TODAY IN THE WORD

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Romans 12:1-2
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TODAY IN THE WORD
Occasionally God calls one of His children to give his or her life as an act of sacrifice and witness for Him. One such believer was John Harper, a Scotsman who was traveling on the Titanic en route to Chicago. Harper was scheduled to become pastor of the Moody Memorial Church in Chicago, but he never made it. However, another Scotsman who survived the disaster later told how Harper, clinging to a piece of debris, called out to his fellow countryman, ""Are ye saved, mon?"" He then quoted Acts 16:31 just before he drowned. The young man was not saved physically, but he took Harper's invitation to heart and put his faith in Christ.

There's no doubt that God works in mysterious ways with some of His people. But the vast majority of us are not called upon to make such dramatic sacrifices. We are called to become God's living sacrifices as we live out our daily routines.

Romans 12:1-2 reveals a facet of worship that we would never have arrived at, left to ourselves. The irony of the term ""living sacrifices"" would not have been lost on Paul's readers. In the ancient world, the very concept of sacrifice involved the death of the sacrificial animal.

But in the book of Romans, Paul was very specific about the kind of sacrifices God wants from His people. He wants our bodies, our minds--everything we have--so completely yielded to Him that it's as if we had died so that ""[we] no longer live, but Christ lives in [us]"" (Gal. 2:20). When we live for God in this way, we please Him and become an effective witnesses to His saving power.

How do we become living sacrifices? By a definite act of worship in which we bring ourselves to Him. Committing our lives without reservation to Christ may seem like a costly way to worship, but not in light of ""God's mercy,"" by which we were freed from sin's bondage through the death of Christ (v. 1).
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
As believers, we have an opportunity tomorrow to serve as Christ's living sacrifices by offering Him our gratitude.

Whether you will be with your immediate family or a larger group, you can help make Thanksgiving meaningful by sharing your praise for God's goodness to you. Invite others to do likewise.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Psalm 100:1-5
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TODAY IN THE WORD
We are so accustomed to the traditional holiday of Thanksgiving in the U.S. and Canada (Canadian Thanksgiving is on the second Monday in October) that it is easy to forget that the formal observance doesn't reach to faraway lands. That familiarity was underscored in a humorous way a few years ago when an eager young school teacher in Texas sent her fourth-grade students home with the assignment to explore how Thanksgiving is celebrated in other countries!

That assignment left a classroom full of children's parents mildly perplexed. But the teacher had the right idea. There's no reason to limit our thanksgiving to one day in one corner of the world. Anyone who knows Scripture knows that we certainly did not invent the idea of holding a festival to praise and worship God for His blessings.

Israel's national calendar contained great feasts to celebrate the harvest and commemorate events such as God's deliverance of the nation from Egypt. In addition, the people observed the weekly Sabbath by worshiping God and remembering His provision.

The psalmists also provide us with a literature of thanksgiving, today's psalm being a wonderful example. This is a joy-filled invitation to worship that is extended to ""all the earth"" (v. 1).

We hope the spirit of this psalm is reflected in your Thanksgiving worship today. Gladness and singing should mark the celebration of those who know the Lord and have experienced ""all His benefits"" (Ps. 103:2).

Verses 3-5 of today's text give us more reasons to thank God than we could exhaust in a lifetime. He is our God, our Creator, and our loving Shepherd who cares for us in His pasture.

These are enough to cause the psalmist to enter God's presence with thanksgiving and praise on his lips (v. 4). But there is even more.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Did you find a card pinned to today's study?

You did if you completed the exercise we suggested last Sunday and jotted down a handful of God's attributes you are especially thankful for. Use them today as part of your own worship, and you may even want to share them with others today as part of your testimony (see yesterday's study).

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Revelation 19:1-10
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TODAY IN THE WORD
Moody Press author Tony Evans tells of the time he went to the airport in Dallas for a flight to Atlanta. When the airline announced that the flight would be delayed, Dr. Evans decided to get something to eat since he knew there would be no meal on the airplane. But as these things often happen, Dr. Evans was halfway through his sandwich when the announcement came that his flight was beginning to board. He left the snack bar immediately, because his ultimate destination was Atlanta, not Dallas. His purpose in being at the airport was to catch a flight, not to eat.

We need to be reminded of our destination and purpose in being here on earth. One advantage of looking into eternity is that it puts things in perspective. We are destined for heaven, where we will worship and serve God in endless joy. So it doesn't pay to get too tangled up in the passing stuff of this life.

Our text today is one of those passages that remind us of where we are going. Here is our worship in the future, when Christ returns to put down His enemies and inaugurate His kingdom. And we are going to be a part of a special celebration called ""the wedding supper of the Lamb"" (v. 9).

As Christ prepared to ride triumphantly out of heaven (Rev. 19:11), John heard a great shout of joy and praise. Then the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down in worship before God's throne and cried out in praise to Him.

This was followed by another roar from the multitude, overwhelmed with joy that the great wedding supper of Christ and His bride, the church, has finally come. It appears that this event will usher in Christ's millennial kingdom, but whenever it occurs it will be an occasion so glorious that anyone who holds an invitation is pronounced ""blessed"" (v. 9).
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
One of the passing things of this life is that refrigerator full of Thanksgiving leftovers.

Are you looking for a good way to put that good food to use other than in endless sandwiches and hash? You could plan a delicious after-Thanksgiving meal this weekend with a few of the people who have encouraged you in your walk with Christ this year.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: John 20:24-29
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TODAY IN THE WORD
Some people must have proof for everything. They won't believe you're engaged until they see your ring, or they ask to see a birth certificate to believe your age. One such skeptic was ""Doubting Thomas,"" one of Jesus' disciples.

It's not that the nickname doesn't fit. Thomas did say concerning Jesus' resurrection: ""Unless I see...I will not believe"" (v. 25). And Jesus rebuked Thomas for his slowness to believe the second time He appeared to the apostles in their locked room.

But Thomas did make the right response when confronted with the risen Christ standing before him. Thomas's confession, contained in today's verse, is the same confession that each of us must make if we are going to be true and wholehearted worshipers of God.

What kind of commitment are we making when we confess Jesus as Lord? We are confessing His absolute authority, His rulership over all--not only over all of creation, but also over us as His people. As our Lord, Jesus Christ is our Master; we are His servants. Servants have no other duty but to obey the word and the will of their master.

Do you see the connection of our servanthood with our worship? We cannot confess Jesus as Lord and truly worship Him, and yet with our next breath express doubt about His Person or His power--or worse yet, refuse to obey Him.

As someone has well said, we cannot say to Jesus as Peter did in Acts 10:14, ""Surely not, Lord!"" One side or the other of this equation must be crossed out, because a servant cannot say to his Master, ""No way,"" ""Not me,"" ""Forget it.""

Does this mean we cannot harbor a second of doubt and still be a worshiper? No, it means that when doubt comes we deal with it. Jesus did not write Thomas off, but neither did He brush off the doubter's failure to believe the power of God.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
We have saved perhaps the best part of today's study for last--the final half of verse 29 in which Jesus pronounced a blessing on those whose faith does not rest on sight.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Matthew 28:1-10
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TODAY IN THE WORD
If you've been to many garage sales featuring ""gently used"" exercise bikes and other fitness equipment for sale, the following statistics won't surprise you. According to recent studies, only twenty-two percent of American adults get enough exercise to produce any lasting health benefits. And apparently our children aren't doing any better. A study at Columbia Children's Hospital in Ohio revealed that today's children are heavier and have significantly higher cholesterol levels than children did fifteen years ago. Unless something changes, according to one of the researchers, three out of every eight American children will eventually die of heart disease.

Those are sobering numbers, and they suggest a question for us to think about in this closing study on worship. What kind of results would be generated if the Holy Spirit were to measure the ""fitness"" level of our worship?

We hope the numbers would be positive. But whatever the case, we want to leave you with the encouraging reminder that worship is a choice of the will, as well as a response of the emotions. This means no power on earth or in hell can keep you from worshiping the Lord.

Mary Magdalene and the other women who met Jesus at His empty tomb are a great example of this. They were wholehearted worshipers of Jesus. The dramatic moment recorded in Matthew 28 was, of course, not the first expression of their commitment to Christ. They had believed and followed Him for some time.

They were also obedient worshipers. We know from Luke 23:56 that on the Saturday Jesus lay in the tomb, they obeyed God's command and observed the Sabbath.

In addition, those faithful women were willing worshipers. They chose to follow Jesus. They came to the tomb that morning of their own accord, not knowing what they would find. And when they saw the resurrected Christ, they readily fell at his feet and worshiped Him (v. 9).
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Here's a brief self-evaluation you can take today to help measure your worship ""fitness."" You might rate yourself from 1 to 10 on each of these questions.

1. Think about the priority that worship has in your life. Is it only nice, or a necessity?

2. How about the practice of worship? Is it part of your daily routine, or only a once-a-week occurrence?

3. Consider the product of your worship. Do you see measurable spiritual growth that can be attributed at least in part to the quality of your worship?

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 9:51-56
- Mark 10:45
TODAY IN THE WORD
Mark Wellman knows the importance of determination. Paralyzed from the waist down in a mountain-climbing accident, the young Wellman felt like giving up on life. But then he began working out and discovered that he was especially good at pull-ups. Wellman’s upper body gained tremendous strength—so much so that six years after his accident, he was ready for a new challenge. Using special equipment that allowed him to pull himself up a fixed rope, Wellman climbed the 3길-foot peak of “El Capitan” mountain in Yosemite National Park.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Mark indicates that Jesus’ followers were “astonished” by His determination as He headed for Jerusalem (Mark 10:32). Accomplishing the Father’s will is what energized the Savior, leading Him forward. We can seek to follow Jesus’ example by our determination to know and do God’s will, both this month and in the new year ahead.

[Soldier4Christ]

TODAY IN THE WORD
When the United States was still actively drafting young men into military service, a formal draft notice was preceded by the call to report for a physical examination. During this usually day-long process, potential draftees could present any medical evidence they had with them that might disqualify them from serving in the army. Some reasons were valid, even obvious, from the examination itself. But the medical excuses presented by many candidates were rejected, and they passed their exams with the proverbial flying colors.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
There’s always the potential for “just one more thing” to do before we makecommitment.

[Soldier4Christ]

TODAY IN THE WORD
John Wesley, the renowned British preacher and founder of Methodism, once said, “Give me 100 preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God, and I care not a straw whether they be clergy or laymen; such alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven.”
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
In response to the disciples’ joy over their ministry, Jesus said, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (v. 18)

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 10:25-37
- Matthew 23:23
TODAY IN THE WORD
G. K. Chesterton burst onto the church scene in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when liberalism was smothering the flames of faith in his native Great Britain and elsewhere. As a writer, critic, and lecturer, Chesterton helped break open a world of smug liberalism and dead orthodoxy. Writer Dorothy Sayers described him as a “beneficent bomb, [who] blew out of the Church a quantity of stained glass of a very poor period and let in gusts of fresh air, in which the dead leaves of doctrine danced.”
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Following Jesus and adopting His priorities means we must be ready to serve even when it is inconvenient, messy, and costly.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 10:38-42
- Psalm 46:10
TODAY IN THE WORD
The Scottish-born pastor Alexander Maclaren was such a skilled preacher of the Bible that he was called the “prince of expositors.” A contemporary said of Maclaren: “He had an extraordinary gift of analyzing a [Bible] text. He touched it with a silver hammer, and it immediately broke up into natural and memorable divisions, comprehensive and clear.”
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Most of us wince every time we hear this familiar story. It strikes very close to our modern hearts.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 11:5-13
- Luke 11:10
TODAY IN THE WORD
Anyone who has ever been roused from bed in the middle of the night can identify with the man in Jesus’ parable on prayer. He was safely tucked away for the night with his family when a friend came calling, looking for bread to feed an unexpected guest.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
This is one of those New Testament passages that seems to offer us a “blank check” concerning prayer Of course, God never promises to answer every wish we send His way. But Jesus is telling us here to be bold when we come to God with our requests. Psalm 37:4 suggests a key to answered prayer. Why not memorize this great verse over the weekend—and then make it your prayer pattern for the week ahead?

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 11:14-26
- Luke 11:20
TODAY IN THE WORD
Andrei Sinyavsky died earlier this year. You may not recognize the name, but Sinyavsky was one of the first writers sentenced to prison in the Soviet Union. In 1966, Sinyavsky received a sentence of seven years’ hard labor for publishing his controversial works. The trial was a rallying point for Soviet dissidents. One observer said Sinyavsky’s case was significant because it “marked the first time in the history of the Soviet Union that writers had been put on trial for what they had written.”
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
It’s obvious that Jesus was not the one on trial that day. Although we need not fear the condemnation the Pharisees brought on themselves, there is a truth we can learn here. God is never on trial. The tests He brings along the way—whether physical, financial, or spiritual—are to prove the mettle of our faith, not to determine whether or not He is faithful. That fact has already been decided (see 1 Cor. 10:13). If you are facing a trial today, ask God for the grace to bear it and to use it to strengthen your faith.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 11:37-54
- Micah 6:8
TODAY IN THE WORD
In 1997, major league baseball marked its fiftieth anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s promotion to the Brooklyn Dodgers—the step that broke baseball’s color barrier. But 1947 was not the first test of Robinson’s character. As an army officer in 1944, Robinson was arrested and court-martialed for refusing to move to the back of any army bus, even though the army had issued orders officially ending segregation. Robinson was acquitted when the charges against him were shown to be false.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Jesus still calls for a decision from each person today. Do you know someone who needs to decide for Jesus Christ? There is no better time to share the gospel with this person than during the Christmas season when people are often more aware of spiritual things. Today, why not pray for a “divine appointment,” a God-given opportunity to present the truth of the gospel to your unsaved friend?

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 12:13-34
- Luke 12:34
TODAY IN THE WORD
In an effort to bring attention to the long-term effects of gambling, the U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of forming a federal commission to study and publicize gambling’s consequences. Whether this move will have any real effect remains to be seen. But the need for someone to get the issue on the table is obvious. The Harvard Medical School Center for Addictive Studies says that in the next decade or so, our nation will face more problems with teenaged gambling than it will with drug abuse.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
The Christmas season is a great time in which to teach our children and remind ourselves about the true values of life.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Luke 12:35-48
- Luke 12:35
TODAY IN THE WORD
When it comes to being on the alert and ready at any moment to do the job, it’s hard to beat the Pony Express. This historically famous mail service between St. Joseph, Missouri, and California depended on constant movement and readiness. Relay stations were established every ten to fifteen miles. A rider would shout aloud as he approached a station, giving the station master very short notice that he needed to be outside waiting with a fresh mount. Even when a rider came to the station where he was to spend the night, another rider was already mounted and waiting, ready to grab the first rider’s bundle of packages and continue the trip.Express obsolete after just eighteen months. But we have this service’s intriguing example of what it means to be ever watchful. Jesus used two parables to teach us the value of readiness and watchfulness as His servants.urged His followers to pursue the true riches of God’s kingdom. Today’s lesson gives us an excellent reason for not letting our attention be captured by temporary earthly wealth. Our Master is coming back any day to judge and reward us in keeping with our faithfulness to His commands.and watchful servant of Christ’s. Jesus likened His return to that of a bridegroom bringing his bride back to his house. He might not arrive until the wee hours of the morning, but that doesn’t matter. He still expected his servants to have everything ready for him.directly but addressed His second parable to anyone who wanted to be a wise manager or steward. Some Bible teachers see in verses 42-48 a reference to the faithless leaders of Israel who were abusing their responsibilities. same. Those to whom God has given responsibility are under obligation to serve Him faithfully, always ready for His return.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Most of us live by daily schedules and fixed dates. number of days to finish getting ready. We also know exactly when 1998 will arrive.question to think about today. If you knew that 1998 would be your last year to serve the Lord, would you plan differently? Let’s make sure we are doing the most important things today and every day. Jesus is coming soon!